Lucy's First Date
by DarkPhoenix101
Summary: Lucy is going out on her first date and Edmund is far from happy about it. Will Lucy abandon Narnia like her sister Susan?
1. Chapter 1

**Lucy's First Date**

Disclaimer: The Chronicles of Narnia and all the characters and places therein are the creation of C. S. Lewis. I own nothing except the plot.

Chapter 1

Lucy Pevensie was nervous. This was the first time she had actually been asked out by a boy and she was unsure how to behave. Of course, as a queen in Narnia princes and nobles had courted her frequently but, she reflected ruefully, courtship in Narnia and dating here in England were very different. The rules of love and courtship in the Narnian world were very exact and formal; it was perhaps the only area of life where she had more freedom as a teenage girl back here in England

When Michael had asked her out, she had been shocked. His family attended the same church as the Pevensies but Lucy had barely exchanged more than a dozen words with him So when he had approached to ask her to the dance the church was putting on it had been several moments before she mustered the self possession to shyly accept, her face red with embarrassment.

Although she didn't know Michael that well he seemed like a nice boy and Lucy was flattered and excited that he seemed interested in her. Her brother Edmund however was far from happy and had been furious with her and with Michael. She had to physically restrain Edmund from storming over to confront him. Ever since then her younger brother had been distant and surly, although now she came to think of it, he had been distant to her for several weeks and Lucy could not understand why.

With a sigh Lucy turned to examine her reflection in the mirror. The dress she wore was beautiful, coloured a light green and cut in a style that flattered the seventeen year olds curves. It wasn't too revealing, showing no more than a hint of cleavage and with a skirt that dropped well past her knees, but Lucy knew Edmund would disapprove. Probably he would not approve of the way she dressed tonight unless she was covered from head to toe and wearing a chastity belt. For once she was glad that Peter was away at University; having one overprotective brother around was hard enough to cope with.

Glancing at her watch Lucy realised she had less than half an hour before Michael called to pick her up. She really wanted to be ready downstairs and not give Edmund a chance to bully him. Resolutely, Lucy sat down in front of the mirror and started to do her make up.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

The second youngest Pevensie, King Edmund the Just of Narnia, Count of the Western March and Knight of the Noble Order of the Table, was scared out of his wits. He was not afraid of any physical danger, not troubled by any ghost from the past. The spectre of the White Witch did not menace him, nor did any phantom of ogre or minatour haunt his dreams. No, Edmund was terrified of losing his youngest sister, to the same disease that had claimed his other sister Susan.

Over the past month or so, he had noticed changes in Lucy that alarmed him deeply. To begin with she had started wearing make up. Not much to be sure, just a little lipstick and powder and a hint of blush; he even grudgingly admitted to himself that the light pink lipstick Lucy used actually suited her, a far cry from the garish reds that Susan favoured. Still, it was horribly reminiscent of Susan when she first started to withdraw from them. Even worse she was going out with a boy tonight to a dance. Make up and dances and boys, the very things that seemed to have turned Susan against Narnia and her siblings.

The tapping of high heels on the stairs interrupted his troubled thoughts and a second later Lucy burst into the sitting room.

"Edmund!" she cried, her face beaming "How do I look?"

Edmund stared at her open mouthed. He had never seen his younger sister look so stunning. But as he took in the make up and elaborate hairstyle, the nylon stockings and stiletto heels he was reminded yet again of Susan and dread gripped his heart.

"Fine" he muttered in response to her question, his eyes avoiding hers.

"Ed!" Lucy murmured, her face concerned. She stepped forward and laid her hand on his arm. "What's wrong?"

Edmund wrenched his arm from her grasp and snapped viciously "Nothing is wrong!"

Lucy looked hurt; unshed tears glistening in her eyes.

"Oh don't start crying," Edmund said sarcastically "You'll make your mascara run and we can't have that on you're big date can we?"

Lucy stared at him in shock "Why are you being so horrid to me, Edmund?"

Before the young man could reply they both heard the doorbell ring.

"I expect that will be lover boy!" Edmund sneered, "I want a word with him!"

He turned to leave the room but Lucy stepped in front of him her eyes blazing. The distress that had previously shown in her face was now replaced by unmistakable anger.

"There's no need for you to talk to him Edmund, especially with the foul mood you're in tonight" She said this with such firmness that even Edmund was silenced. "I'll get my coat and just go. I want to talk to you after I get back!" With these words Lucy strode from the room, slamming the door behind her.

Edmund remained standing for a moment then went back to sprawl on the sofa. He knew Lucy was upset and hated himself for the way he behaved, but he simply could not help it. Susan losing faith had been hard enough, but the idea the same might happen to Lucy was just unbearable. Lucy had been the one who discovered Narnia, the one who was closest to Aslan. She had been his closest ally and confidant in the Narnian court and he could never forget either the times they had ridden together into battle. If Lucy turned away from Narnia and Aslan, there was little hope for any of them.

Edmund remembered the effect Narnian air seemed to have on visitors from our world, the way it made them stronger and more capable. Miserably he wondered if the air of this world had the effect of driving girls crazy as soon as they reached the age of seventeen.


	2. Chapter 2

**Lucy's First Date**

Disclaimer: The Chronicles of Narnia and all the characters and places therein are the creation of C. S. Lewis. I own nothing except the plot.

Chapter 2

Edmund did not notice when Lucy returned. His University entrance exams were coming up soon and he was immersed in his books. Lucy's voice suddenly brought him back to awareness of his surroundings.

"Edmund!" He looked up, startled to find his sister watching him intently. "I need to talk to you!"

"Have a good time did you?" Edmund inquired. He tried carefully to keep his voice neutral but could not prevent a slight sneer appearing in his tone.

Lucy paid no heed to that tone. Edmund could see from her expression that there was something she was determined to say and he knew nothing would stop her.

"Edmund" she continued, "There's something really important you need to understand about me. I am not like Susan and I never will be!"

The young man was startled at hearing his secret fears spoken out loud. Lucy evidently caught his reaction for she said, "That's what's worrying you isn't it? You think I'm starting to act like her?"

"Aren't you?" Edmund responded. He found himself unable to meet her eyes but continued anyway. "You're going out to parties, going to dances with boys, putting all that stuff on your face…"

His voice trailed off as he realised Lucy had started laughing. Still giggling she sat down beside him and took hold of his hand.

"Edmund, you're blowing things out of proportion," she told him gently. "I'm a Queen of Narnia yes, but I'm also a seventeen year old girl living in this world. Of course I enjoy going to parties and dances. Of course I want to look pretty and have boys notice me! But fun as those things are I would never put them before Aslan and Narnia, or my family either the way Susan has. How could you think that of me?"

Edmund thought about what his sister had said. He desperately wanted to believe what Lucy was telling him but doubt still lingered.

"But you never acted like this in Narnia," he objected.

Lucy began laughing again. "Of course I did. Edmund!" He looked confused so she hastened to explain her words. "I enjoyed parties and balls almost as much as Susan. I might not have been serious with any of my suitors but I enjoyed the attention when they courted me." Edmund opened his mouth to comment but she forestalled him, knowing what he was about to say. "I know Ed, I didn't wear make up in Narnia, neither did Susan, it wasn't the fashion for ladies to do that but it is in England." She smiled at him mischievously. "You follow fashion in the same way," and she continued relentlessly as he shook his head in denial. "But you do Ed, you never used aftershave in Narnia, or stuck your hair down with that horrid smelling stuff!"

Edmund flushed uncomfortably. Ever since he started using a styling cream to smooth down his hair his sister had teased him unmercifully about it.

"But," he protested, "that's what young men my age all do"

Lucy smiled triumphantly. "Exactly!"

Edmund was silent for a few moments. He could see the truth of what Lucy had said and it did relieve some of his anxiety, although not all. Susan's betrayal had hurt him deeply and his fears that Lucy would follow her, however irrational, could not be dismissed in just a moment. But he recognised the sense of his sister's arguments and could not refute her logic. When he spoke again his tone was apologetic.

"I'm sorry if I misjudged you, Lu." A smile appeared on Lucy's face as he used that affectionate diminutive, for the first time in weeks. "It's just that Susan turning her back on us like that hurt so much, I couldn't bear to see the same thing happen to you!"

"I understand how you feel." Lucy looked at him sadly. "She's my only sister and we used to be so close. Now we're almost like strangers."

" I just can't understand her," he continued. "How can she pretend all our adventures were just children's games?"

"I think she was really hurt by not being allowed back to Narnia," Lucy told him. "So hurt she's now pretending the entire thing didn't happen to make the pain less."

"We were all sad at not being allowed back," Edmund retorted rather angrily, "but the rest of us didn't try to pretend it was all make believe."

"I know," Lucy replied, "But I don't think Susan ever saw Narnia quite the way we did. The important thing for her was all the beauty and splendour, the lovely dresses and parties. She wasn't just sad at not being allowed back, she was resentful too. She had come to think that all the glory of being a Narnian Queen was something she was entitled to instead of being Aslan's gift. But all our time in Narnia was a gift, not a right. And the really important part of that gift was not Narnia itself but the lessons we learned there, lessons we were meant to use in our lives here in this world. Susan never really understood or accepted that."

Edmund looked at his younger sister in astonishment. He had never heard her speak like this before and he was impressed by her insight.

"Perhaps you're right," he admitted. "I just wish there was some way we could help her come to her senses."

Lucy shrugged helplessly. "There's not much we can do when she refuses to even discuss the subject. We just have to keep hoping for a change of heart and keep trusting in Aslan. In the end it's all between His Paws."

Hearing Lucy talk about trusting Aslan in such a matter of fact way had a profound effect on Edmund, and finally lifted the last vestiges of anxiety about her from his heart. He wondered now how he could ever have thought she would become like Susan and was feeling rather ashamed of doubting her. He felt ashamed too of the way he had behaved earlier when she was getting ready to leave with Michael. He knew it was the first time she had been out with a young man. That was he imagined, quite a significant thing for a girl, and thanks to him her evening had hardly got off to the best start.

"Anyway, how was your evening?" he asked, trying to make up for his previous behaviour. "Did you have a good time with Michael?"

"It was alright." Lucy sounded a little cool about the subject. "But I don't think I'll be going out with Michael again."

Edmund was a bit alarmed at this, wondering what the boy had done to make her react that way. Lucy must have noticed his concern because she quickly reassured him.

"Oh don't worry Edmund, he didn't do anything inappropriate!" She smiled a little ruefully. "Apart from almost boring me to death! He's a nice enough boy but we really have nothing at all in common."

"Well I'm sorry you didn't enjoy your evening," Edmund told her.

"Oh it wasn't that bad," she assured him. "I enjoyed the dancing. It's just I see no point in going out with a boy I can't really talk to."

These words gave Edmund much to ponder. He knew Susan cared little if she had anything in common with her many escorts, so long as they were attractive men who took her to the most fashionable parties. In fact he had an unpleasant suspicion that talking was the last thing Susan wanted to do with a young man. Edmund began to appreciate just how different his two sisters were. Although Lucy evidently enjoyed dressing up and going to parties and dances, much like other girls her age, it was very clear these things were at the periphery of her life rather than the centre. With Susan on the other hand, they seemed to constitute her entire existence.

"You're looking very thoughtful, Edmund." He looked up to see Lucy smiling at him. "I think I'd better let you get back to your studies." She squeezed his hand affectionately. "Good night, Ed."

"Lucy?" Edmund called out to his sister when she was halfway to the door, realising suddenly there was something important he had yet to tell her.

"Yes, Edmund?" She stopped and turned back toward him.

He walked towards her slowly. Now that he had let go of his foolish worries and prejudices, he could see and appreciate just how much care she had put into her appearance.

"You really do look very beautiful tonight," he told her sincerely.

Lucy blushed at the compliment. Smiling, she leaned forward and softly kissed his cheek.

"Thank you, Edmund!"

Edmund rubbed a finger along his cheek and looked at the faint pink stain that had come off. "Hey!" he protested. "You're getting lipstick all over me!" He was trying to sound annoyed but the smile on his face betrayed him.

"Oh, poor boy!" Giggling, Lucy took out a handkerchief and wiped away the offending mark. "There, all gone!"

On a sudden impulse, Edmund reached out and pulled his startled sister into a hug.

"I love you, sister!" he whispered into her ear.

Although surprised by the unexpected display of affection, Lucy returned the hug gratefully.

"I love you too, brother!"

After a few seconds they released each other, Edmund now looking a bit embarrassed. Smiling at him, Lucy slipped from the room, closing the door quietly behind her. Her brother stared at the door, blinking rapidly. He rubbed his eyes fiercely, trying to rid them of an annoying and quite inexplicable moisture. It must be, he assured himself, just a result of tiredness from too much studying, and not an emotional reaction to the reconciliation with his sister, no not at all!

Whatever the truth of that might be, there was a smile on Edmund's face as he returned to his books. For the first time in many weeks, he felt at peace.


End file.
